Refrigerating apparatus



K. K. KESLING 3,294,462

REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed March 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 72 2 2INVENTOR.

His Afforfl ey Dec. 27, 1966 K. K. KESLING 3,

REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed March 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.Keir/1 K. Kes/mg His A/orney Uited States Patent f 3,294,462REFREGERATENG APPARATUFi ieith K. IIesling, Dayton, @hio, assignor toGeneral Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich, a corporation of DelawareFiled Mar. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 442,984 9 Claims. (Cl. 312-214) Thisinvention pertains to refrigerating apparatus and more particularly toan improved and simplified refrigerator cabinet construction.

Refrigerator cabinet construction has been simplified from time to timethrough the years accompanied by changes in appearance and style. Withthe advent of increased competition and foam insulation, it is desirableto restudy the construction to obtain greater advantage from the use ofthe foam insulation together with greater efficiency, simplicity, lowercost and improved styling and appearance. The throat construction wherethe inher walls join the outer walls has been a diflicult probleinvolving high material and labor costs.

It is an object of this invention to provide a simple, inexpensivethroat construction for a refrigerator cabinet which in a simpleinexpensive manner provides paramagnetic material for cooperation with amagnetic door seal upon the door without the use of multiple fasteningdevices such as screws.

it is another object of this invention to provide a simple inexpensivethroat construction for a refrigerator cabinet having a plastic innerliner which will also provide a simple way in which a magnetic door sealmay be effectively used upon the door.

It is another object of this invention to provide a simple inexpensivethroat construction for a refrigerator cabinet which will provide amoisture barrier for the insulation space which will remain sealeddespite variations in thickness of materials and temperature variations.

These and other objects are attained in the form shown in the drawingsin which the outer shell extends in a substantially straight lineforwardly and terminates substantially in a raw edge at the front. Thisouter shell may be made either of metal or of plastic resin. The innerliner may also be made of plastic resin and provided with an integraloffset throat arrangement at the front which extends in close adjacencyto the front edge of the outer shell and terminates in a raw edge atsubstantially the same point. If both the outer shell and inner linerare of plastic resin, there is no need for a sealing strip in between.However, if the outer shell is of metal, it is preferable to provide acompressible sealing strip in between the adjacent front edge portionsof the outer shell and inner liner to provide a moisture barrier andalso to prevent any undesirable bimetal effect caused by the differencein expansion of the outer shell and the inner liner under changes intemperature.

Also in accordance with my invention there is provided an ornamentaltrim strip having a U-shaped portion extending around and concealing theraw front edges of the outer shell and inner liner and having alaterally extending portion of paramagnetic material extending over theoffset portion and cooperating with the magnetic door seal mounted uponthe door for holding the door closed and providing an air tight seal forthe door opening. To further prevent undesirable effects from thetemperature variations, a parting agent is provided upon the surfaces ofthe inner liner adjacent the throat and also adjacent any protuberancessuch as shelf supports provided in the inner liner to prevent adherenceof the liner to the foam insulation in areas of high stress. Theinsulation space between the inner liner and the outer Patented Dec. 27,1966 shell is substantially filled with a plastic resin foam insulationsuch as polyurethane foam or an epoxy foam.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparentfrom the following description, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the present invention isclearly shown.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator cabinet embodying oneform of my invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken along the lines22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to the wall portion ofFIG. 1, but having an outer shell of plastic resin instead of metal; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the plastic inner linershowing the areas in which the parting agent is applied.

Referring now more particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown a refrigeratorcabinet 20 provided with a front door 22 surrounded by an ornamentaltrim strip 24 located at the front edges of the sidewalls 26 and a topwall 28. The sidewalls 26 and the top wall 28 are a part of the outersheet metal shell of the cabinet which is featured by a sheet metal wallformed as shown in FIG. 2 in which the sheet metal of the side wall 26extends forwardly straight to the raw front edge 32. Within the outermetal shell including the side walls 26 and the top wall 28, there isprovided an inner liner 36 of plastic resin such as acrylonitrilebutadiene styrene copolymer, vinylchloride polymer, or polyethylene orpolypropylene. This liner may be provided with inwardly extendingprotuberances 38 for shelf supports upon the sidewalls 4i and anoutwardly extending offset 42 at the throat portion at the front whichjoins to a forwardly extending integral flange 44. This flange 44extends closely adjacent the outer sheet metal shell and terminates in araw edge at the side of the edge 32. The offset 42 provides theconnection between the flange 44 and the sidewalls itl as well as thetop and bottom inner walls 46 and 48. The liner also has a rear wall 50.

According to my invention in order to minimize the effect of temperaturevariations upon the cabinet structure and particularly between the outermetal shell and the inner liner 36, I apply by spraying, brushing orroling a parting agent 52 which extends entirely around the outer frontportion of the inner liner 36 including the forward flange 4,4, theoffset portion 42. and the adjacent portions of the sidewalls 40, thetop and bottom walls 46 and 48. Such a parting agent may be polyvinylalcohol or a silicone wax. In addition I provide the parting agent onthe outside of the inner liner 36 in the form of bands 54 on the outsidesurface at and adjacent the protuherances 38. These bands 54 may alsocontinue across the back Wall St) to connect the bands on the oppositesides. As a further precaution against the bimetal temperature effectbetween the forward flange 44 of the inner liner 36 and the front edgeof the outer shell 26, I provide a compressible strip 56 in betweentheir front edges all around the door opening as shown in FIG. 2. Thiscompressible strip may be formed of foamed polyethylene or polyurethaneor other foamed plastic resin. It adds to the width of the trim strip24, making it more pleasing in appearance.

The front edges of the sidewalls 40, the top and bottom walls 46 and 48as well as the front edges of the outer shell are held together by aU-shaped section 60 of the ornamental trim strip 24 having an outerflange portion 62 on the outside of the outer shell and an inner flange.portion 64 on the inside of the forwardly extending flange 4-4 of theinner liner 36. This U-shaped section 60 prefera ably has connected toit and at a right angle to it a laterally extending flange 66 extendingover and resting against the outwardly extending offset 42 throughoutits entire periphery. This flange 66 is of paramagnetic material andpreferably is of the 300 series of stainless steels such as thosecontaining 17% chrome without any substantial amounts of nickel. TheU-shaped section 60 is preferably made integral with the flange portion66 of the same stainless steel. However, if desired other steel coatedwith either chrome plating or some other ornamental surface and havingparamagnetic properties may be used instead. The flange 66 preferablyextends entirely around the offset portion 42 and extends inwardly farenough to cooperate with the magnetic door seal 68 extending entirelyaround the inner face 70 of the outer periphery of the door 22 tomagnetically hold the door closed and to maintain a substantially airtight seal.

As shown, the door 22 has an outer sheet metal structure 72 having aninwardly turned flange 74 upon which rests the outwardly turned flange76 of the inner door pan 78. The magnetic door seal 68 is held in placeby the metal clamps 80 which in turn are held in place by the screws 82.The interior of the door is filled with cast polyurethane foaminsulation 86. To prevent problems from temperature variations and thebimetal effect of the difference in materials under temperaturedifferences, the inner surface of the inner door pan 78 may likewise beprovided with a parting agent such as one of those previously mentioned.The insulation space between the inner liner 36 and the outer shell 26is likewise preferably filled with polyurethane foam insulation 34. Thepolyurethane foam insulation is light weight, strong and efficient andprovides a good bond wherever desired with the outer shell and the innerliner to provide a rigid structural unit.

In the form shown in FIG. 3, the inner liner 136 is of the sameconfiguration and materials as the inner liner 36 in FIG. 2. In thisform, however, the outer shell 125 is of plastic resin which may be ofthe same composition as the inner liners 1'36 and 36. The inner liner136 has an outwardly extending offset portion 142 connecting directlywith a forwardly extending flange portion 144. This portion 144 extendsalongside the front portion 145 of the outer shell 125. Each terminatesat the front in a raw edge. Because of the nature of these materials,they can be held together in a substantially air tight arrangement bythe trim strip 124 which may be identical to the trim strip 24 asillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. In this trim strip the U-shaped portionincludes an outer flange portion 162 upon the outer face of the outershell 125 and an inner flange portion .164 on the inner face of thefonwardly extending flange 144 together with a connecting portion 160which extends over the front edges of the portions 144 and 145. As inFIG. 2, there is provided at a right angle to the flange 164 an inwardlyextending flange i166 which overlies and rests against the offsetportion 142 and is of paramagnetic material so as to cooperate with themagnetic door seal upon the door such as the seal 68. 'Preferably theentire trim strip is made of a paramagnetic stainless steel such as the300 series containing substantially no nickel and about 17% chromium.

This particular refrigerator cabinet construction with the partingagent, the seal strip and the particular trim strip which holds thefront edges of the inner liner and outer wall in an ornamental U-shapedtrim having an integral flange cooperating with the magnetic door sealprovides a very desirable arrangement extremely easy to assemble withoutthe use of screws and other common fastening devices which requireconsiderable labor. Because of the absence of screws and such fasteningdevices, it is very neat and attractive and saves much labor.

While the embodiment of the present invention as herein disclosed,constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other formsmight be adopted.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges, a trim memberhaving a first portion extending around said edges and the adjacentportions of said outer shell and said outer portion, a door for saidcabinet provided with a magnetic member, said trim member having aparamagnetic second portion extending inwardly from said first portioncooperating with said magnetic member to hold the door closed.

2. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges, a trim memberhaving a first portion extending around said edges and the adjacentportions of said outer shell and said outer portion, a door for saidcabinet provided with a magnetic door seal, said trim member having aparamagnetic flange extending inwardly from said first portioncooperating with said door seal.

3. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner 'wall within said outer shell having an innerportion spaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portionextending into close adjacency with the inner side of said edges, andterminating in an adjacent edge and a laterally extending portionintermediate and extending between said inner and outer portions, a trimmember having a generally U-shaped portion extending around said edgesand over an adjacent portion of the outer face of said outer shell andthe adjacent portion of the outer portion of said inner wall, a door forsaid cabinet provided with a magnetic member, said trim member having aparamagnetic inwardly extending portion overlying said laterallyextending portion of said inner wall cooperating with said magneticmember upon said door.

4. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges and terminatingin an adjacent edge and a laterally extending portion intermediate andextending between said inner and outer portions, a trim member having agenerally U-shaped portion extending around said edges and over anadjacent portion of the outer face of said outer shell and the adjacentportion of the outer portion of said inner wall, a door for said cabinetprovided with a magnetic member, with a magnetic door seal, said trimmember having alongside said generally U-shaped portion a laterallyextending flange of paramagnetic material overlying a part of saidlaterally extending portion of said inner wall cooperating with saidmagnetic door seal.

5. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges, a compressiblesealing strip extending between said portions of said outer shell andinner liner in close adjacency, a trim member extending around saidedges and the adjacent portions of said outer shell and said outerportion, said trim member 24 constituting the sole means for holdingsaid compressible sealing strip between the closely adjacent portions ofsaid outer shell and said inner wall.

6. A refrigerator cabinet as specified in claim 5 in which said strip isof plastic resin foam.

7. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall Within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges and terminatingin an adjacent edge and a laterally extending portion intermediate andextending between said inner andouter portions, a trim member having agenerally U-shaped portion extending around said edges and over anadjacent portion of the outer face of said outer shell and the adjacentportion of the outer portion of said inner wall, cast plastic resin foambetween said inner wall and said outer shell, portions of the innersurface of said inner wall being provided with a parting agent.

8. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell pro vided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges, and terminatingin an adjacent edge and a laterally extending portion intermediate andextending between said inner and outer portions, a trim member having agenerally U-shaped portion extending around said edges and over anadjacent portion of the outer face of said outer shell and the adjacentportion of the outer portion of said inner wall, cast plastic resin foambetween said inner wall and said outer shell, the inner surfaces of saidlaterally extending portions of said inner wall being provided with aparting agent.

9. A refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell provided with a dooropening at the front, said shell having side and top walls with edges atthe front extending forwardly generally in alignment with said side andtop walls, an inner wall within said outer shell having an inner portionspaced inwardly from said outer shell and an outer portion extendinginto close adjacency with the inner side of said edges and terminatingin an adjacent edge and a laterally extending portion intermediate andextending between said inner and outer portions, a trim member having agenerally U-shaped portion extending around said edges and over anadjacent portion of the outer face of said outer shell and the adjacentportion of the outer portion of said inner wall, said inner wall beingprovided with inwardly extending protuberances providing supports for ashelf, cast resin foam between said inner Wall and outer shell, theinner surfaces of said inner wall at and adjacent said protuberancesbeing provided with a parting agent.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,678,750 5/1954King 22080 x 2,958,210 11/1960 Rill 312214 X 3,006,708 10/1961 Saunders312214 FOREIGN PATENTS 123,966 4/1947 Australia. 840,855 7/ 1960 GreatBritain.

CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner.

CHANCELLOR E. HARRIS, Examiner.

5. A REFRIGERATOR CABINET INCLUDING AN OUTER SHELL PROVIDED WITH A DOOROPENING AT THE FRONT, SAID SHELL HAVING SIDE AND TOP WALLS WITH EDGES ATTHE FRONT EXTENDING FORWARDLY GENERALLY IN ALIGNMENT WITH SAID SIDE ANDTOP WALLS, AN INNER WALL WITHIN SAID OUTER SHELL HAVING AN INNER PORTIONSPACED INWARDLY FROM SAID OUTER SHELL AND AN OUTER PORTION EXTENDINGINTO CLOSE ADJACENCY WITH THE INNER SIDE OF SAID EDGES, A COMPRESSIBLESEALING STRIP EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID PORTIONS OF SAID OUTER SHELL ANDINNER LINER IN CLOSE ADJACENCY, A TRIM MEMBER EXTENDING AROUND SAIDEDGES AND THE ADJACENT PORTIONS OF SAID OUTET SHELL AND SAID OUTERPORTION, SAID TRIM MEMBER 24 CONSTITUTING THE SOLE MEANS FOR HOLDINGSAID COMPRESSIBLE SEALING STRIP BETWEEN THE CLOSELY ADJACENT PORTIONS OFSAID OUTER SHELL AND SAID INNER WALL.